How To Make Your Own Absinthe In 7 Easy Steps

Your knowledge of this infamous spirit may be limited to what you’ve seen in EuroTrip, but the green fairy is so much more than just hooking up with your sister. And it’s surprisingly easy to brew at home. We’re talking "bottle of Everclear, some herbs, and 26 hours" easy.

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Step 1

To start, you’ll need to gather the basics. You can get the ingredients in-store or online, but since they’re a little obscure, we used this kit from Bootleg Botanicals. It’s not cheating, it’s enterprising.

Step 2

Put two cups of the base spirit in an airtight container. If you have a 190 proof base spirit like Everclear, add two ounces of water to slightly dilute. Use a funnel, or risk soaking yourself in ethanol.

Step 3

Now you’re ready to add the first set of botanicals, which’ll be a mixture of Anise Star Pod, Anise seed, Fennel, Licorice root, Lemon peel, Angelica root, and Coriander. If you don't have the kit, make sure to use a mortar and pestle to crush them them into small pieces.

Step 4

Step 5

Add the wormwood. Historically this is the ingredient that causes incest-inducing hallucinations, but there’s still a lot of debate about the psychedelic potency of wormwood. Either way, you’ll want to add about two teaspoons of Grand wormwood into your mixture. It can have a very bitter taste, so Bootleg suggests steeping it in a tea bag for no more than three hours. Give it another shake for good measure.